Katy Perry, Sara Bareilles, Tegan & Sara and Ellie Goulding to headline benefit concert at Hollywood Bowl

Tegan and Sara

By Sarah Weiss

October is prime time for pumpkin spiced lattes and candy corn overdoses, but the month is even more significant for its dedication to cancer awareness. In addition to planning your stand-out Halloween costume, check out Katy Perry’s “We Can Survive Concert” sponsored by Citi, on October 23, at the Hollywood Bowl. Perry along with her superstar friends Sara Bareilles, Ellie Goulding, Tegan & Sara and Kacey Musgraves, are set to perform at an epic charity concert benefitting the Young Survival Coalition, which provides valuable resources and support to young women diagnosed with breast cancer.

“These are all very powerful women that I really respect and look up to,” Perry told Carson Daly on 97.1 AMP, “and I wanted them to come together to promote this supportive message and have a  fantastic night full of great music. There’s so many great acts in this lineup. And I get to play a lot of songs off the record that will have come out the night before.”

The Young Survival Coalition is a global organization that offers resources and outreach programs to young women who are diagnosed with breast cancer. Contrary to popular belief, young women do get breast cancer, and die more frequently from it than any other type of cancer.

Perry’s fourth studio album, Prism, is set to be released the day before the We Can Survive concert. Her latest No. 1 single, “Roar,” will undoubtedly tie the concert together with its message of strength overcoming adversity.

All proceeds from the benefit concert ticket sales will be donated to support the Youth Survival Coalition.

Jack Johnson promotes healthy, affordable food on US tour

Jack Johnson gets his daily dose of greens

By Hilary Gridley

For many artists, touring means a chance to see different cities and meet fans from all walks of life. For Jack Johnson, it brings an opportunity to effect change on a local level while mobilizing communities to support local farms.

Although the chart-topping singer/songwriter and longtime environmental activist runs his own Kokua Hawaii Foundation, Johnson’s From Here To Now To You tour will support the work of other local and national nonprofit organizations that focus on sustainable agriculture, food access, farm-to-school projects, and other food policy issues.

“While on tour we are lucky to be able to enjoy food from every region that we visit,” Johnson said. “Supporting local farmers at each stop is important to us. Along the way we have met many amazing non-profit groups that promote local, organic, and sustainable food in their communities and schools. Food Day is a great opportunity to introduce people to these groups who are doing important work and celebrate our connection to food.”

Throughout Johnson’s fall tour dates across Europe and North America, fans will be able to connect with non-profits in their communities and share their commitment to local food on AllAtOnce.org. These partner organizations include Farm Aid, Change.org, and Slow Food USA and a suite of local organizations and chef groups.

The tour culminates just before the third annual Food Day on October 24. Food Day supports thousands of events in all 50 states promote healthy, affordable, and sustainably produced food. This year, organizers will focus on encouraging children to cook and asking adults who can cook to pass on their skills. While Food Day won’t accept funding from government or industry, they do encourage forward-thinking companies to host events.

Meanwhile, Johnson’s sixth studio album, From Here To Now To You, hit Number 1 on the Billboard charts.

Visit Johnson’s website to find tour dates near you, then find out how you can get involved with Food Day.

Silversun Pickups and Sea Wolf Host Acoustic Show to Support L.A. Foster Children

Brian Aubert and Nikki Monninger of Silversun Pickups

By Hilary Gridley

In light of recent reports revealing the lack of foster homes for children in need in Los Angeles, some big names in indie rock have stepped up to help the city’s overburdened system.

On September 19, Silversun Pickups will headline a night of music benefitting Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Los Angeles, a local nonprofit that actively recruits, screens and trains volunteers to advocate on behalf of foster children.

“CASA Acoustic Night” will take place at The Satellite in Silverlake and feature intimate acoustic performances from Brian Aubert and Nikki Monninger of Silversun Pickups, Alex Brown Church of Sea Wolf, and Patrick Park and Sara Lov. In addition, DJs from The One AM radio will be spinning throughout the night.

Proceeds will go toward CASA’s mission to expand their resources and support even more volunteers making a difference. Their volunteers are community members assigned to assist a foster child, investigate that child’s circumstances, work to secure needed services, and serve as a mentor for the child.

Tickets are available for $25 at www.thesatellitela.com. The event is 21+.

Can’t attend the event but still want to help L.A.’s foster children? Learn how your donations can help pay for school supplies, send a child to summer camp, or give a young person a chance to attend college here. Potential volunteers can also visit their site to learn about getting involved.

The Killers, Queens of the Stone Age and Fun. line up for Neil Young’s annual Bridge School Benefit Concert

Neil Young and his wife Pegi at a previous Bridge School Benefit

By Sarah Weiss

When Neil Young and his wife Pegi needed to find a school for their special needs children, they took matters into their own hands and co-founded the Bridge School in Hillsborough, CA. What makes the Bridge School special is that it’s not intended as a permanent school placement, but rather a transitional model, with the goal of helping students transition back into their home school districts.

To jumpstart the funding for the new Bridge School, Young called upon his illustrious rock and roll peers to perform in a benefit concert to support the school, and the concert and has been delivering a stellar lineup year after year ever since.

For the concert’s 27th year, a round-up of the best musicians in the business will lend their talents to this great cause. Queens of the Stone Age is set to share the bill with other bands including The Killers, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, My Morning Jacket, fun., Heart, and Jenny Lewis on Saturday, October 26 and Sunday, October 27 at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA. For QOTSA fans especially, the concert offers the perfect opportunity to hear an all-acoustic set from their latest album, “Like Clockwork,” that dropped earlier this summer.

The funds raised from the Bridge School Benefit Concert provides vital funding for their non-profit organization. All the proceeds go to ensure that the Bridge School can continue to help children with severe speech and physical impairments actively participate within their communities and receive the tools they need to become successful adults.

Check out the video about the upcoming concert from a few student reporters at the Bridge School.

Tickets for the Bridge School concerts go on sale this Friday, September 13. Grab your tickets here.

Campus DJ announces next Spinning for a Cause competition – Watch recent winner tout his favorite charity

By Laura Ferreiro

Campus DJ winner DJ Flaxo Spins for a Cause at the Avalon

Earlier this summer, the first-ever Campus DJ event kicked off with a hotly contested competition at the Avalon Hollywood which saw the country’s most talented college DJs battling it out to be crowned the very first Campus DJ champ.

The DJs weren’t just spinning to pump up the crowd and get everyone dancing – they were also spinning for some great causes. Music for Good partnered with Campus DJ on Spinning for a Cause, in which a generous cash donation from Chegg, the Student Hub, and ticket sales proceeds from the event were given to the cause of the winning DJ’s choice, based on a list of four non-profits selected by Music for Good, Chegg, and the Electronic Music Alliance.

After an insanely fun night that ended up in a non-stop dance party, Nick Perloff, a 19-year-old sophomore at Columbia University known as DJ Flaxo, was crowned the Campus DJ champion.

Flaxo chose to donate to 826 National, a renowned non-profit organization dedicated to giving students ages 6 to 18 the opportunity to improve their writing skills and offering free after-school and in-school tutoring programs.

We caught up with Flaxo, who attended 826 Valencia – the San Francisco branch of 826 National – to learn why it meant so much for him to be able to give back to this great organization. Check out the video interview here:

“Shout out to Spinning for a Cause for giving me the opportunity to show love for an organization that really helped me along the way,” Flaxo said. “I chose it because I went there between the ages of 8 and 11. I was really into both expository writing and creative writing and there wasn’t necessarily an outlet for that where I went to school. So 826 Valencia in my hometown San Francisco really cracked my world open. It’s really awesome to give back to an organization I was part of a long time ago.”

DJ Flaxo

In addition to giving back to 826 National, Flaxo won a tour package from Live Nation, and drove away with an amazing prize – a 2013 MINI Cooper S Countryman.

Now that the new school year is underway, we’re excited to announce that the Second Annual Campus DJ competition will kick off in January 2014 with returning partners Monster Energy and Chegg, and will be even bigger and better than the last one! College DJs should get their chops up now to compete in Spring 2014.

Music for Good will partner with Campus DJ once again to present the 2014 Spinning for a Cause competition, which gives college DJs the chance to spin in support of some amazing causes.

Check out some of the highlights from the 2013 Campus DJ competition:

Keep an eye out for more details about the 2014 Campus DJ competition and Spinning for a Cause. In the meantime, get inspired by DJ Flaxo’s remix of Henrix & Jakob Liedholm’s “Close Your Eyes.”

https://soundcloud.com/flaxo/close-your-eyes-flaxo-remix

Ben Harper, She & Him and other artists team up to support ailing musicians on Sweet Relief comp

She & Him

Musicians Ben Harper, Jackson Browne, She & Him, and 10 other artists are joining together to help struggling musicians with a new compilation album in support of the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund. “Sweet Relief lll: Pennies from Heaven” is available on iTunes today, September 3.

The Sweet Relief Musicians Fund provides financial assistance to professional musicians facing illness, disability or age-related problems. “Pennies From Heaven” commemorates the 20th anniversary of the inaugural release “Sweet Relief: A benefit for Victoria Williams,” which was inspired by Sweet Relief Musicians Fund founder Williams’ battle with multiple sclerosis.

“Musicians are always among the first to give their energy and talent to help other people in times of emergency, though they are very often without health insurance themselves, and need our support when they fall prey to illness and hardship,” singer-songwriter Jackson Browne said about the project. “Sweet Relief has been helping musicians for years, and has helped some whom I am very much indebted to for enriching my life.”

Keeping with the theme of support, each artist chose to cover a song that deals with either needing assistance or helping someone in need. The full track listing is below.

“Sweet Relief lll: Pennies from Heaven” track listing:

Ron Sexsmith                  Pennies From Heaven

Shelby Lynne                  Brother Where Are You

Sam Phillips                     Big Spender

k.d. lang                           How Did You Find Me Here

Ben Harper                      Crazy Love

Genevieve Toupin            Heart Of Gold

Joseph Arthur                   If I Needed You

Rickie Lee Jones              Surfer Girl

Tina Schlieske                  With A Little Help From My Friends

Victoria Williams               Change Is Gonna Come

She & Him                         King Of The Road

Eleni Mandell                    I’ll Be Home

Jackson Browne               Don’t Let Us Get Sick

Check out Ben Harper doing “Crazy Love”:

Vampire Weekend and The Avett Brothers Headline Virgin Mobile FreeFest To Support Homeless Youth

By Hilary Gridley

Some of the most coveted festival tickets don’t come with a price tag. For the fifth year in a row, Virgin Mobile Freefest has sold out in just seconds; not a surprising feat for a totally free festival featuring Vampire Weekend, The Avett Brothers, Pretty Lights, Robert Thicke, MGMT and more.

Why free? “Because,” as Virgin says, “you deserve it!” FreeFest, which falls on September 21 this year, was born from a desire to give back, give music fans a break in a rough economy, and draw more attention to youth homelessness.

That’s why anyone without lightning fast fingers could still secure tickets to the Columbia, MD-based event by volunteering her time at homeless youth shelters or donating hygiene kits through The RE*Generation, Virgin Mobile’s charitable initiative to address youth homelessness. Though the volunteer opportunities were scheduled to run through September 7, fans eager to catch Kaskade, Icona Pop, CHVRCHES, The Knocks, and Ghost Beach have already scooped up all the “Free.I.P” tickets.

Even those willing to cough up $50 to secure a place at FreeFest were quick to move: the “Freemium Package,” which includes tickets, a FreeFest t-shirt and a donation to The RE*Generation house, has already sold out just days after its release.

This all bodes well for a festival with a history of making an impact. Past FreeFests have raised nearly $800,000 for The RE*Generation, generated more than 75,000 hours of volunteer time and created more than 25,000 outreach kits. 2011 and 2012 donations helped build the Sasha Bruce RE*Generation House, a transitional living facility for homeless youth in Washington, DC. These funds not only keep the house running, but also support urban farming and entrepreneurship programs for its residents.

Virgin Mobile featured “The House That FreeFest Built” in their lineup announcement video, highlighting the deep ties between the festival and the causes it supports.

Other charitable partners include Virgin Unite, the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group, and Sasha Bruce Youthwork, which provides housing, counseling and classes to young people in DC who need a place to stay for any reason.

If you weren’t able to grab tickets, you can still follow Virgin Mobile on Facebook and Twitter for spontaneous ticket giveaways leading up to the festival. You can also support The RE*Generation by donating online.

Brands at Agenda trade show draw inspiration from music and good causes

By Laura Ferreiro

It’s always inspiring to see how companies use music and charitable giving to take their brands to new heights. At the recent Agenda trade show in Long Beach, hundreds of clothing, accessory and streetwear purveryors converged to show off their latest lines and explain the philosophy behind their brands.

Eco-friendly brand ECOALF at Agenda 2013

ECOALF
Spanish brand ECOALF embodies the idea that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. The eco-friendly company uses discarded tires to make shoes and flip-flops, plastic bottles to create bags, and recycled fishing nets as the fabric for their clothing. Their looks for men, women and kids are sporty yet chic, high-fashion and highly functional. What’s even better, it’s totally sustainable!

House of Marley
Some brands, such as House of Marley, integrate music and philanthropy into their very fabric. As the name would suggest, House of Marley was established by Bob Marley’s wife, Rita, and the Marley family to keep the reggae legend’s “vision of hope and unity alive.” The company, which sells stylish headphones, audio systems, bags and watches, was showing off its latest products at Agenda. Not only are they made from earth-friendly materials such as recyclable woods, metals and textiles, but Marley products support 1Love, the Marley family charity that’s dedicated to supporting youth, the planet and peace. We love it!

Sunskis
An exciting new sunglasses company founded by a surfer after returning from a life-changing trip to Australia inspired this sporty, lightweight and flexible line of “sunnies.” Not only are the glasses attractive and affordable, but the company is a member of 1% for the Planet and donates proceeds to the Leave No Trace Center, which educates kids about the importance of environmental awareness and activism, and the Surfrider Foundation, which protects the world’s oceans and beaches.

Teva
Many outdoor enthusiasts are fans of Teva’s ultra-comfy and durable sport sandles and hiking shoes, but did you know that the brand has been supporting clean water charities since it was founded 25 years ago? For every pair of shoes Teva sell, they have committed to cleaning up a foot of shoreline. Teva is also the official footwear sponsor of First Descents, a non-profit committed to helping young adults with cancer and empowering them to regain control of their lives by experiencing outdoor adventure therapy through kayaking, rock climbing and other outdoor adventure sports.

Krochet Kids

Katie and Stewart from Krochet Kids

We also ran into our friends at Krochet Kids, who were showing off their adorable bags, tees and hats. This unique non-profit sells handmade crocheted apparel and accessories made by women in impoverished communities around the world. Proceeds from the sales of the items go directly back to the communities to create a cycle of employment, education and mentorship for communities in developing nations. It also aims to inspire young people to work for positive change in the world.

 

Lollapalooza 2013 Day Three: Phoenix, Vampire Weekend and ONE

Thomas Mars from Phoenix crowdsurfing before the encore.

By Hilary Gridley

Sunday’s lineup may have been the most stacked, making a lot of tough choices necessary. Here are some of our highlights from the third and final day of Lollapalooza.

Bands
MS MR
Overheard at the MS MR set: “She looks like a fire goddess.” The fan was of course referring to singer Lizzy Plapinger, who’s becoming almost as known for her constantly changing (but currently orange/purple) hair as she is for her soulful voice. They may have a dark sound, but the duo lit up the stage with their own hits (“Bones” recently soundtracked a “Game of Thrones” trailer) as well as an LCD Soundsystem cover of “Dance Yrself Clean.”

Two Door Cinema Club
These guys know how to have a good time, and how to make sure the crowd is in on the fun. Their energy is so infectious that even if you’ve never heard a song of theirs, you’re sure to be dancing as much as their most devout fans.

Alt-J
If you were a fan of last year’s An Awesome Wave, you’ll love their live show. The band stays true to what worked so well on their recordings and brings it to the stage; all the complex layering sounds even better as it glides through the open air and bounces off the Chicago cityscape.

Vampire Weekend
It takes a certain amount of stage presence to watch a crazed fan streak across the stage, get tackled by a security guard, and keep playing without sacrificing one beat of “Giving Up The Gun.” But that’s exactly what happened, because as a sea of teenage girls kept screaming, Ezra is perfect. Vampire weekend is perfect. This set was perfect.

Phoenix
It’s hard to watch Phoenix without feeling completely in awe of their talent. From the moment they took the stage via a jumbotron-projected athletic sprint, they never once slowed down, tying their earliest material to just-released singles with familiar riffs from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and Bankrupt! As a bright red complement to the tuned-down The Cure on the other end on the park, Phoenix more than proved they can scale up a 1000 person live show to a closing act worthy of the tens of thousands in their audience.

Causes

Love Hope Strength
Visit Lolla, save a life? Love Hope Strength has saved numerous lives at festivals by encouraging fans to swab their cheek and sign up for the national bone marrow registry. So far, 12 donor matches came from past Lollapalooza signups. I’m happy to say I brought them one person closer to their goal of 300 registrations for the weekend. You can catch them both at festivals and on tour with bands like OAR. Stop by and swab your cheek – it only takes five minutes.

ONE
The ONE Campaign was working hard at Lollapalooza to channel festival-goers’ voices into first-time energy access for 15 million in Sub-Saharan Africa. When I spoke to them, booth visitors were averaging well over 300 letters to their congressional representatives each day, enthusiastic about hitting their 1000 letter goal.

Lollapalooza 2013 Day Two: Mumford & Sons, Oxfam America and more

Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons

By Hilary Gridley

The sun has come out and the music and causes are in full swing. Here are Saturday’s highlights.

Bands

St. Lucia
St. Lucia’s Caribbean-infused pop had the whole crowd dancing and singing along to hits like “Elevate,” the most-shared song on Spotify last week. Jean-Philip Grobler dressed in his usual bright patterns and jumped around the stage with more energy than any other performer of the day.

HAIM
There’s just no one else like HAIM. The three sisters from LA jam, banter, and drum their way into the hearts of everyone who sees them live. They recently released “The Wire,” which has long been a favorite from their shows, and it sounded better than ever. You can tell they’ve been hard at work, and it’s paying off. These girls are going places.

The National
I only caught a portion of the National’s set, but it was enough to see lead singer Matt Berninger smashing his mike stand and pleading that his “mind’s not right” during “Abel.” His commitment to performing is enough to turn anyone into a diehard fan.

Postal Service
10 years is a long time to wait for a band to come back, but this correspondent would wait 10 more to see a set like this again. From the first moments of “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight,” the crowd was supercharged on nostalgia and sheer excitement. It’s possible I cried during “Nothing Better.” I certainly wasn’t alone.

Mumford & Sons
“This is the quietest song you’ll hear all weekend,” Marcus Mumford told the audience before gathering the band around a single vintage broadcast microphone to cover Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire,” completely captivating the huge but silent crowd. When they followed it up with “I Will Wait” to finish the night, they cemented their place as quite possibly the best touring band today.

Causes

Green Mountain Energy
Since 1997, Green Mountain Energy has been providing energy from completely renewable and pollution-free sources. Stop by their tent on Green Street to purchase carbon offsets for your transportation to the festival.

Oxfam
Oxfam is at Lollapalooza promoting their Behind The Brands campaign, which calls on the ten biggest food companies to be more environmentally and socially responsible. Fans can stop by to sign the petition asking General Mills to end the secrecy about the course of its material. I spoke with their representative Jessica, who told me “We at Oxfam love music — after all, it’s one of our biggest supporters!”

Powering a Prince record at the Working Bikes station

Working Bikes

Funded by proceeds from their Chicago-based bike shop, Working Bikes collects around 8000 unused bikes every year, fixes them up, and donates them to local and global nonprofit partners. The Green Street booth is equipped with a stationary bike that powers a record player. I got in some exercise while playing Purple Rain.